Is the ranking member of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism and Homeland Security throwing his weight behind a push to amend the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act?

Rep. Bobby Scott (D., Va.) is set to weigh in on possible legislative changes to the foreign bribery law at a briefing next week sponsored by Squire, Sanders & Dempsey. Scott, who has previously expressed support for potential legislation, could be signalling he is ready to get behind a bill.

The appearance comes amid an expensive lobbying push to amend the statute by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, which argues the U.S. government is stretching the FCPA in ways that are hurting U.S. business. Some on the Hill have been receptive.

U.S. senators Amy Klobuchar (D., Minn.) and Chris Coons (D., Del.) have said they plan to introduce legislation that would clarify parts of the law. Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner (R., Wis.) said during a hearing on the FCPA in June that he would also put forward a bill.

During the June hearing, Scott suggested he supported adding a compliance defense to the law, which would shield from liability companies with adequate preventative procedures. Scott recently told the Wall Street Journal that he and other committee members are looking at the law. “If you’re going to have these kinds of penalties, companies ought to know clearly what the rules are,” he said.

Justice Department officials reject the need for legislative changes to the FCPA and say strong enforcement of the law, which reaches foreign and U.S. companies, helps create a level playing field in business transactions by eliminating corruption from the equation. But the Chamber and lawyers who support amending the FCPA say there is still substantial confusion over what is legal and what isn’t.

Scott’s appearance is scheduled for 8:30 a.m. next Tuesday. Lawyers from Squire Sanders will also discuss FCPA enforcement.

A spokesman for Scott didn’t respond to a request for comment. A spokeswoman for Squire Sanders also didn’t respond.

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